The Silent Duck
by God'sgirlforever
Summary: She saw something she wasn't supposed to see. Nobody knows what it was. So she retreated into a world of silence. Could a rag-tag hockey team help her find her voice again? Or will she remain a silent Duck?
1. Chapter 1

She saw something she wasn't supposed to see. Nobody knows what it was. All they could get out of her was a few scribbled sentences on some paper. "They told me not to tell. They'll hurt me." Whatever happened, it was enough to scare her into a world of silence-one no one but her lived in.

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><p>"Are you sure this was a good idea?" Grace York questioned her husband, sitting across the kitchen table from him. "Moving clear to Minnesota just because some fancy head doctor told us there's a small chance it would help?"<br>"If I didn't think it would work, I wouldn't have agreed to do this," Lincoln wearily replied. He placed his head in his palm. "Besides, my mother could use some help around the house and no one else is willing to volunteer. It's a perfect place for us to start over. Sasha can have a fresh start in a new school and all the kids will have a chance to visit with her before it's too late."  
>Grace sighed. "I know it's a great opportunity, but what about our life here? Your mom could move in with us. It might help her health and the Wu's are next door…"<br>"Honey, please. Just give it a chance. We'll stay for a year and if it's not working, we'll move back."  
>"Okay. Just one year. But no more."<p>

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><p>Sasha woke to the sound of her parents talking quietly over the car radio. Not wanting to disturb them, she kept her eyes closed but her ears open.<br>"…it's the perfect school for Sasha. Small class sizes and it's fairly close to your mom's." Grace adjusted the volume slightly.  
>"What about the price? Is it affordable?"<br>"It's a private school but there are scholarships available and both Sasha and Trey are smart enough."  
><em>Private school? <em>Sasha though to herself. _Well aren't we getting fancy now.  
><em>"Would they be equipped to handle Sasha?" Lincoln asked.  
><em>He makes it sound like I'm a puppy.<em> Sasha silently harrumphed, petting the nose of her Rough Collie Meatloaf. The family's Golden Retriever Mouse had her nose pressed against the window and her tongue hanging out.  
>"She's not a puppy, Link; she's a child. I think the teachers will be more than able to appropriately <em>work<em> with Sasha."  
>Her parents lapsed into silence. Meatloaf nuzzled Sasha's cheek with her wet nose. She turned her face and buried it in the rough fur of Meatloaf's neck. She fell asleep that way, lulled by the warmth of fur and the quiet sound of the radio.<p>

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><p>Sasha took a deep breath and grabbed another stack of boxes off the porch, bringing them into her grandma's house. She set them down in the kitchen and brushed her waist-length black braid off her shoulder. Rose and Levi, her younger brother and sister, came running in just then, followed by Mouse and Meatloaf.<br>"Sasha, Mommy wants to know if you seen the doggy leashes yet," Rose stated, grabbing Mouse by the collar and trying to straddle her like a horse. Levi took Meatball's collar and straddled him, shouting for the poor dog to move.  
>"Levi, stop riding on the dogs and help with the boxes," Mrs. York told the 6-year-old, entering the kitchen. She turned to Rose and handed her a glass bowl with a goldfish inside. "Rose, go put Mittens somewhere safe." The 5-year-old skipped off to put Mittens away and Levi dove headfirst into a random box.<br>The glass door leading to the porch opened and Lincoln stuck his head in. "Honey, where are-"  
>"I don't know," Grace interrupted. "I don't remember which box it's in. You'll have to look yourself."<br>"-the boys," he finished. "Where are the boys?"  
>"The boys?" She asked distractedly, moving a few boxes off the counter and opening them. "Sash, can you check the van for the pet supplies?"<br>"Joey and Trey? Your oldest two children." Just then a football sailed past his head, followed by the sound of thundering feet. "Never mind," Mr. York quickly said. "I found them."  
>"Boys! No throwing balls in the house." Mrs. York snatched the ball out of the open box it had landed in and plunked it on a pile of crumpled newspapers. "Now start unpacking some of these boxes."<br>Sasha silently slipped back into the mid-August heat as the rest of her family continued to sort through the mess. The van doors were still opened but the driveway had been cleared of boxes. She closed the side doors and went to check the trunk for the dog leashes. Sure enough, they were sitting on top of a pile of pet supplies. Sasha grabbed the pile and went to close the door.  
>"Can I help you?" The male voice startled Sasha so much she squeaked and dropped her load, quickly turning and freezing at the sight of him. The tall, blond-haired boy bent down and picked up the pile she had dropped. "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you." He held out the pet supplies; Sasha squeaked again and bolted for the door, almost running into her mom on the porch.<br>"Hey, slow down, honey. You'll trip," Grace told her daughter. She leaned over and kissed the top of Sasha's head. "Now go get some food. Sandwiches are on the counter and the boys are in the backyard."  
>"Hey, you forgot your stuff." The boy held the pet supplies out towards Sasha. She turned back, her face turning bright red. She took the pile and ran for the door again. "You're welcome," he called after her.<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

_**JasonLeeScottFan, you are my hero. Seriously. No one was reviewing my story and I was sad and then I got an email saying you reviewed and it made me happy again. You will find out in this chapter who the boy was. (I will also send you virtual cookies and flowers.)**_

**_TTAznGrl92, you are also my hero for following this story. I will send you virtual cookies and flowers too. You guys rock!_**

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><p>A couple of days after moving in, Sasha and Trey were exploring downtown Edina. Sasha had Meatloaf on a leash, trotting along next to her; Trey was being dragged a few feet ahead with Mouse, who seemed to think she was taking Trey for a walk instead of the other way around.<br>"Mouse, sit. Sit. Mouse, I said SIT! I said…oh never mind." Trey turned back to Sasha. "How is it that Mouse listens to you and Rose but not me?" he complained. Sasha shrugged and made a sit gesture at Mouse. Mouse sat down right away, her tongue hanging out. Trey glared at the dog. "Oh sure, listen to _her_."  
>Sasha smiled and let out a quiet giggle. Looking at Meatloaf, she pointed her finger at the ground and moved it in a circle. The tri-colored dog immediately wound herself around Trey, tangling her leash around his legs; the dog sat down and looked up at her owner, looking pleased. Sasha patted the dog's head as Trey tripped and landed on his rear.<br>"Is that any way to treat your favorite twin?" he asked, sending a mock glare at her. Sasha put on her best innocent face and held up her hands. "Of course it wasn't you. It was Meatloaf, wasn't it? Don't worry; you're still my favorite twin."  
>Once Trey had managed to untangle himself and stand up, the twins continued their walk. A bright poster caught Sasha's eye and she stopped to look. It was a sign for a local dance school; in bold lettering it announced that the school was accepting registration for fall dance classes. Sasha felt her heart stop; she had been hoping there would be some dance classes in the center of nowhere. She tugged on Trey's hand and pointed, nearly hopping up and down in excitement.<br>"Edina School of Dance. How about that?" Sasha pulled her brother towards the door of the legion, where the poster was hanging. "Hey, hey, hey, slow down." He managed to pull his arm free long enough to tie up the dogs before allowing himself to be pulled inside.  
>"Sashay, sashay, step hop, plié, pirouette, élevé, jette and end in fifth position plié." A blond-haired girl was dancing across the stage set up at the far end of the room. A lady in the corner was watching with a sharp eye. Sasha guessed that was the teacher. "Very good, Anna. Again. Bend the knees on the plies. Keep your leg lifted on the élevé. Once more. Sashay. Sashay. Step hop. Plié. Pirouette. Élevé. Jette. Fifth position plié. Perfect."<br>Trey leaned over to whisper in Sasha's ear. "Bet you could do that better no problem." Sasha nodded absently, already envisioning herself floating around in her black leotard.  
>"May I help you?" The voice brought Sasha back to reality. She looked up to see the teacher standing in front of her; instinctively Sasha stepped back as she realized she hadn't been imagining herself dancing.<br>"Uh, my sister Sasha was just wondering about signing up for ballet lessons," Trey quickly responded, protectively resting a hand on Sasha's shoulder. "She took lessons in San Francisco. She's really good."  
>The teacher looked Sasha up and down. "I can see that. However, she is still interrupting my private session. Registration is Monday afternoon at 2. Until then I must ask you to leave. Anna, take a five minute break."<br>Anna put a hand on Sasha's shoulder before she could leave. "That was amazing. Really amazing. If you want, I could give you more information about the dance program here. Meet me outside in half an hour, okay?"

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><p>Anna hardly took any time to change after dance class that day. She pulled on her shorts, threw a shirt on, and shoved a pair of sandals on her feet before running out the door. Sitting a few feet away on a bench were the kids from the dance class, each holding a dog on a leash. She went over and introduced herself. "Hi. I'm Anna."<br>"I'm Trey," said the boy, holding out his free hand. Anna shook it. "This is Sasha and this is Mouse," he said, motioning first to the girl and then the Golden Retriever at his feet.  
>"Hi, Mouse," Anna said, holding out her hand to the dog. It sniffed her hand a few times before losing interest. Anna turned to the dog Sasha was holding. "And who is this good boy?"<br>"Meatloaf is a girl."  
>"Oh. Hello, Meatloaf." Meatloaf put her paw in Anna's hand. Anna smiled as she shook the dog's paw.<br>"Meatloaf is Sasha's dog. Way more behaved than Mouse."  
>"I see. Well, I have to say that Sasha, you are one of the best dancers I've seen in…well, in forever," Anna said, turning to Sasha. Sasha blushed and looked at the ground. "No, really. You were amazing. Everyone in my class last year would never be able to pull off that routine with as much grace as you. And they've been dancing pretty much as long as you've been alive."<br>"Well, Sasha's dream is to be a professional ballerina."  
>"Good for you. I think you'll be one of the few to make it," Anna told Sasha as she started to walk. Sasha and Trey stood up and followed Anna. "So here's the deal with dance in Edina."<p>

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><p>"Fakes left, fakes right. And he scores again!" Avery Banks crowed, raising his hands in victory. Adam hit his stick against the nearest bench in frustration.<br>"Are you hockey nuts done yet?" Avery and Adam both looked up to see their sister Anna standing by the door of the tennis court; two strangers were standing next to her. "I want you to meet somebody." The boys looked at each other but shrugged and rollerbladed over. "This is Trey and his sister Sasha. They're our new neighbors. Meet my brothers Avery and Adam." Adam waved at the pair.  
>"Hi. Nice to meet you," Avery said, offering his hand. Trey took the hand and shook it; Sasha squeaked and hid behind Trey. "Hey, it's the mouse."<br>"The mouse?" asked Trey as everyone looked at Avery in confusion. Avery leaned over to get a better look at Sasha as he pointed to her.  
>"You. I saw you the other day. You were getting stuff from your van. You squeaked just like that and ran away when I offered to help."<br>"When was that?" Anna asked.  
>"A couple of days ago; when they were just moving in."<br>"Sasha's very shy around new people," Trey explained. "Especially boys. Don't take it personal or nothing."  
>"Good to know." A slightly awkward pause ensued before Trey finally spoke up.<br>"We gotta go," Trey said as he motioned to a pair of dogs tied up outside the tennis courts. "Time to bring the dogs home and feed them."  
>"Right," said Avery. "Sasha, it was nice to meet you and finally get your name." Sasha gave a thumbs up from behind Trey. Avery smiled and gave her one back. He leaned on his hockey stick as he watched them go.<br>"I like them," Anna commented, crossing her arms. "They seem nice."  
>"I think she's cute," Avery stated mildly. "Think she'd ever go on a date with me?" Adam and Anna stared at their older brother. "What? I'm just asking."<p>

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><p><em><strong>Read, review, and let me know what you think.<strong>_


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